Is It Such A Wonderful Life?
by HBCarolyn
Summary: It's Christmas time in Boston and Jane and Maura are searching for meaningful relationships for their future.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Not only do I not own Jane and Maura's characters as they belong to Tess Gerritsen, Janet Tamaro and TNT, but I also do not own the characters associated with "It's A Wonderful Life." Thanks to all for the chance to use them for a holiday get-together. **

Is It Such A Wonderful Life?

"Gabriel, it's Nicholas. I've given all of the Christmas angels their assignments this year but I have one more. I need you."

"Okay. What do you need?"

"There's a young couple in Boston that need help."

"Kids?"

"No, they're not married, don't have any children. Yet. These two are perfect for each other but both are too stubborn to see it. We need to bring them together this Christmas."

"This year, Nicholas? It's almost Christmas Eve."

"Yes, this year. Their collective circumstances indicate that if Jane and Maura are not brought together this year tragic consequences could result for all involved, including their families."

"I'll see what I can do. Where in Boston will I find this Jane and Maura couple?"

"Detective Jane Rizzoli works as a homicide detective and Dr. Maura Isles is the Chief Medical Examiner for the City of Boston. Both work in the main precinct. Hurry, Gabriel."

Dr. Maura Isles settled on her sofa with a glass of wine and her favorite medical journal. She was hoping to relax for an hour or so before retiring for the night. Today had been a tough day; she hoped for something better tomorrow, although she didn't believe it would happen.

Across town Detective Jane Rizzoli was helped upstairs and into her apartment by her former partner, Vince Korsak. An impromptu invite to the Dirty Robber and a confession of what happened between her and Maura earlier that day prompted Jane to drink until she was ready to pass out. Vince loaded her into a cab and saw her home.

Vince half pulled, half carried Jane into her bedroom where he dropped her on her bed, swung her legs on the bed, pulled off her boots and threw a blanket over her. As a last minute thought before exiting the apartment Vince rolled Jane onto her side. A drunk Jane could be dangerous, Vince thought, and he didn't want Dr. Isles to see a dead Jane after she asphyxiated on her vomit.

_Women, _he thought. _Thank God I'm not seeing anyone right now. Three divorces are more than enough for any man. _Vince locked himself out of Jane's apartment and returned to the cab. He wondered how the two women planned on working together after today.

Frankie Rizzoli let himself into his apartment, ice bag firmly attached to his left eye. He removed it long enough to notice how much bruising he already had. _Damn you Jane, if only you could learn to keep your mouth shut,_ Frankie thought disgustedly. He made his way into the kitchen and poured himself a scotch. He wondered how he was going to explain his black eye to his newest girlfriend Melanie without her believing he was a violent man. Frankie Rizzoli only defended close friends and family members. He shook his head once more before refilling the ice pack and heading for bed.

Across town Frost was already in bed and half asleep when his phone rang. He recognized Maura's ring tone and wondered why the m.e. was calling him this late at night. Although they'd become friends over the course of their employment together Maura rarely called late at night over a personal matter.

"Tell me something, Barry. Do you think I lost Jane today?"

"You get right to it, don't you Maura?" Frost stalled for time.

"I just, I don't have many friends or confidantes other than you and Jane, Barry, if I've lost her that leaves you. Oh God, I hope I didn't interrupt anything. Never mind, go to sleep Barry I'll see you at work tomorrow." Maura sounded flustered.

"Hey, Doc, it's okay. I was just resting my eyes. Listen, I'm sure Jane will come around in time. I think you just caught her off guard today. Don't worry about it. I'll bring in donuts tomorrow morning and this will give you a chance to bring coffee for Jane. Give you an icebreaker with her. Think of what you want to say. Jane's a good egg, she'll listen. She cares about you, Doc."

"Thanks, Barry. Good night."

Maura ended the call and stared off into space. For once she didn't know what to think. Part of her thought Jane might be in her normal mood tomorrow with Maura's actions forgotten; her mind chided her for being childish in thinking Jane would merely overlook Maura's egregious behavior today. Since Maura never had a best friend growing up or many friends at any time of her life, she could only hope and pray Jane didn't cast their friendship aside.

Stretching out on her bed Maura knew sleep would evade her for most of the night. She turned on her side and looked at the part of the bed Jane occupied during their sleepovers. Maura hoped those hadn't ended today, either. With tears coursing down her cheeks she did the only thing she could think of that might help.

"Dear God, help me. I don't want to lose Jane."

With that Nicholas summoned Gabriel. Gabriel began reviewing both women's backgrounds and saw what Maura did to make everyone question her behavior and Jane's possible reactions. He looked at the supporting cast of characters and began formulating plans. He hoped Dr. Maura Isles had the backbone she'd need to put her relationship with Jane back on track.

Her tears subsiding Maura silently berated herself for her actions. She worried once again that Jane's friendship would be gone. _If it is I'll be alone for the rest of my life, _Maura thought. _I only have myself to blame. _

If she could rewind the day and change her actions she would, she knew that with all her heart. The first part of the morning was fine. They met for coffee in the precinct café and had a chance to see Angela. It was a slow day with no new homicides but because of the approach of the holiday season the mood in the precinct was light. The homicide team Jane headed worked on old files and closing out paperwork. Several times during the day Jane visited Maura in the morgue, sometimes on business but other times Jane just wanted to see Maura, see how her day was going, take her to lunch. Maura watched Jane's actions very carefully and came to the same conclusion she'd made everyday for the past two weeks.

Today was the day for action. Maura thought it over once again, same as she had for several days running. Today she wanted to tell Jane she wanted more than friendship with the detective.

Maura knew her social awkwardness caused problems and she wanted to avoid sticky situations as much as possible. Maura planned to tell Jane at lunch. But lunch got cancelled when Angela slipped on some water in the kitchen of the café and Jane accompanied her to the emergency room.

Jane returned to the precinct after a few hours, to grab the rest of her stuff and update everyone on Angela's condition-just a sprained ankle. Angela would be back at work in a few days.

Maura went up to the bullpen to leave some files for Jane and was in time to hear the update on Angela. Maura went over to Jane's desk to leave her good wishes for Angela's speedy recovery when Jane unexpectedly stood up to leave. Maura stood in front of the detective she'd developed feelings for. A quick rush of feelings overtook Maura and she did something she never thought she'd ever do in the bullpen, in front of all of Jane's coworkers and several beat cops.

Maura kissed Jane, a full-on passionate kiss on the lips. Jane had pulled back, confused. "Maura, what the hell?" Jane managed to croak out as she grabbed her keys and fled the building.

Maura fled to the morgue, grabbing her coat and purse as she ran out of the building.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2

Sunlight streaming in her windows woke Jane. Cursing she rolled over and carefully opened her eyes. The pain behind her eyelids only increased. Shutting her eyes she crawled out of bed on Maura's side (as she'd become accustomed to calling it) and practically crawled into the bathroom.

Maura sighed as she looked at the clock for the one hundred and eighth time. She hated mornings like this, where she couldn't sleep the night before for worrying about Jane. The only difference was this time she was the cause of the problem between them. Maura replayed the scene in her head one more time. She cringed when she saw the look on Jane's face and only managed to keep the tears at bay.

"Morning, Ma. I brought you some breakfast," Frankie called out. He knew Angela was sporting crutches for a couple of days. He heard a weird clanking sound in the kitchen and walked through to the back of the house. Angela was propped up at the stove, trying to balance making bacon and eggs for breakfast.

"Hi, son, how are you today? WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?" Angela screamed out as she turned around and saw that one side of Frankie's face was black and blue.

"Got into a little fight at the Robber last night, it's not as bad as it looks, Ma."

"I hope the other guy looks worse," Angela commented. Frankie didn't reply.

"Like I said I brought breakfast for you so you don't have to cook."

"I don't mind, I managed to prop myself up okay."

"You're supposed to be off your ankle. So get off it. Let me help you into the living room and you can settle on the sofa for the day."

"How did you manage to get in a fight? Tommy I can understand, Frankie, but not you. You never fought in school."

"That's because I didn't have to, Jane fought everyone for me."

A knock at the door caught Frankie's attention. "Let me answer the door, Ma."

Angela listened as Frankie opened the door and she heard Maura's voice.

"Angela, how are you doing today?" Maura asked as she entered the room.

"All right, all things considered. Frankie brought breakfast and ordered me to the sofa for the day."

"He's right, Angela, you need to stay off that ankle as much as possible. You also need to keep it iced and elevated."

"Frankie has a cold pack, don't you, Frankie?" Angela said slyly.

"I was about to ask what happened, Frankie, but I think I know," Maura said softly.

"You know what happened, Maura? Please tell me, my son has been reticent in sharing his recent exploits."

Maura kept looking at Frankie's face. She sighed. "It's my fault, Angela. I'm so sorry, Frankie."

Frankie shook his head. "No, Maura, this is Jane's fault, not yours. Don't blame yourself."

"What did your sister have to do with your black eye, Frankie? Don't tell me Jane hit you?"

"No, Ma, she didn't. Jane had a little too much to drink last night at The Robber, one of the beat cops make a snide comment and I stepped in to help. I caught his fist while keeping Jane from him."

_Yes, Jane would have torn him limb from limb, _Maura thought. _All because I couldn't control myself. _

"Angela, Frankie, I have to get to work. Keep your foot elevated and ice it every hour for fifteen to twenty minutes at least. Thank you, Frankie." Maura said and quickly exited the Rizzoli home. She was shocked to see Frankie's face and black eye and knew she was the cause. Once again she fought tears as she drove to the precinct.

Barry set the box of donuts down on top of the filing cabinet in the bullpen. He looked over to see Jane's desk still empty. _Figures, _he thought. _She's always late the morning after a night at The Robber. Probably hungover. I hope she listens to Maura. _Like the majority of the precinct Barry Frost knew Jane and Maura belonged to each other, were each other's soul mates.

Frost went into the café for coffee. He caught Korsak's eye as he entered. As the last customer paid for his breakfast Korsak wandered over to Frost.

"It's all over the precinct, what happened between Jane and Maura yesterday," Vince said by way of greeting. Frost nodded.

"Yeah, I know you went out with Jane last night. How's she doing?"

"I rolled her upstairs and left her passed out on her bed about two thirty this morning, so she must have one mother of a hangover today."

"Jane say anything while you were out with her?" Frost asked. Korsak hesitated.

"Yeah, but I think she meant it in confidence. I'll let her tell you."

"You know they belong together."

"Yeah, but try telling that to Jane." Korsak returned to the counter as another rush of cops came in for coffee.

Barry stood there stirring his coffee for another moment before returning to his desk. He could only hope for a murder to solve or Jane pulling her head out of his ass but he wasn't betting on what happened first.

Jane managed to pull on her sunglasses while putting her hair in a ponytail. She had no idea how she looked; a mirror wasn't going to be her best friend this morning and she didn't really care. Stopping in the bathroom for a couple aspirin she grimaced, grabbed her badge, gun and keys and left for work. She didn't know what she wanted more: an easy day for her hangover to subside or a new case to keep her team occupied.

It was the latter she got. Entering the precinct Jane got a glimpse of Maura stepping off the elevator with two coffees in hand. Maura headed for Jane and started to hand off a coffee.

"Not now, Maura, can't talk," Jane managed to squeak out. Maura nodded and lowered her eyes.

"Don't look at me that way, I said I can't talk. I have a mild hangover."

"Only a mild one? That's good, Jane because Korsak is telling everyone how drunk you were last night."

Jane stopped and looked at Maura. Slowly lowering her glasses Maura could see the aftereffect of the alcohol on Jane's face. "Oh." Maura turned and headed back for the elevator.

Jane's tongue felt glued to the roof of her mouth and the cottony feeling didn't help. She wanted to reach out to Maura but couldn't. She debated following the medical examiner to the morgue but Frost came out of the bullpen calling her name.

"Jane, we caught a case. Let's go." Jane nodded and turned around to leave, sipping the hot coffee Maura thankfully provided. She knew Maura would be at the scene and maybe after the coffee kicked in Jane could speak intelligently to Maura about yesterday.

The body was hanging from a tree in one of Boston's largest parks. Maura observed it as well as she could while she waited for CSRU to take all of the photos needed. When the body was cut down she examined it briefly before ordering her assistants to load it into the van. She wanted to be back at the morgue; she wasn't looking forward to dealing with Jane on any basis right now.

"Maura, other than strangulation, do we have any other cause of death?" Jane's voice sounded lower and raspier than normal. Maura tried and failed to ignore the shiver Jane's voice usually caused in her body.

"I'll have more for you later, Detective," Maura answered briskly and walked away.

_Damn, it's worse than I thought, _Jane thought. "Maura, wait."

"No, Jane, I'll see you later," Maura replied, continuing her pace. _I can't stop now I'll break down in front of everyone. After yesterday I don't want to give the guys anything more to tease Jane about. _

Jane watched the retreating back of one Maura Isles. Gabriel sat high above the scene, watching and listening. _Oh, Detective Rizzoli, I know your heart. _


	3. Chapter 3

Part 3

Jane sat at her desk, thumping her pencil on a pile of paperwork. She was frustrated. She couldn't get Maura to talk to her on anything but a professional basis and she didn't know what to do to straighten things out between them. She also couldn't concentrate on her paperwork or their case.

Their case. They had no leads at the moment. Jane was waiting for Maura's call that the autopsy was complete. _Damn, I'm going downstairs. I've watched Maura do an autopsy before._

"Heading down to the morgue Frost," she murmured before hitting the stairs. She was too impatient to wait for the elevator. But when she reached the morgue door Jane stopped. What was she doing? Things between her and Maura were so sketchy at the moment Jane feared that one wrong move from her would alienate Maura forever. Jane knew she could never forgive herself if she hurt Maura. Releasing her grip on the morgue door Jane turned and went back upstairs.

Maura listened to Jane's footsteps; her heart lurched in her chest when she heard the detective's distinctive footsteps as she reached the bottom of the stairs. When Jane stopped, then Maura heard Jane's footsteps head back upstairs she thought her heart would drop in her shoes. Maura forgot what she was doing and stepped back from the autopsy table. The autopsy was almost complete and she'd have the report done in a couple of hours. Then maybe she could talk to Jane.

Frankie nursed his black eye as much as he could. He spent the day on desk duty cursing his sister's big mouth and rotten luck in the romance department. He loved Jane dearly, he never knew another brother-sister combination who could love each other so deeply despite their sibling rivalry.

Jane took care of Frankie throughout his childhood. She was always there to help sooth him when he fell off his bicycle or got noticed by the neighborhood bully. Frankie learned over time to stand up for himself but Jane made sure it was a rare occurrence. Frankie didn't care who Jane loved only that she was happy. Deep down he knew his Ma felt the same way so he didn't understand why Jane was so adverse to being in a relationship with Maura.

It took him some time to see the deep feelings the two women had for each other; if pushed Frankie could admit his surprise at realizing his sister was in love with another woman. One evening a few months back they were all at the Dirty Robber after Jane and Frost closed another of their cases. Jane and Maura sat together, as usual. It wasn't until Maura said something and Jane leaned into her Frankie noticed Jane's hand was on Maura's thigh. Then he realized it had been there for some time. Maura said something else only Jane could hear and Jane patted Maura's thigh. He began watching the two every once in awhile and he saw the looks, the caresses, the touches the two shared. Jane and Maura couldn't stand next to each other without touching.

Then Jane shot herself and Maura fell apart. Frankie knew then the line blurred for both women; they were in love with each other. Maura sat in the hard hospital chairs in the waiting room then by Jane's side, murmuring every once in awhile that Jane couldn't leave her, Maura refused to live without her. Jane's looked to Maura first when she regained consciousness and was concerned that the doctor spent all that time at her bedside. It took Jane all of three minutes to put her hand out to Maura's cheek. Maura leaned into it.

Frankie expected Jane to make a move for Maura then. When she didn't Frankie thought they were being discreet. At the family Christmas dinner the year before Frankie made an innocent comment to Jane about the mistletoe in the front hallway. For the rest of the evening Jane consciously avoided standing under the mistletoe when Frankie noticed how often Maura seemed to be under it.

"Jane, Maura's under the mistletoe," Frankie said at one point, giving his sister the 'why don't you do something about it' look he might have given one of his friends.

"So?" Jane replied.

"Go kiss her," Frankie hissed. Jane pulled back and looked at her younger brother.

"What the hell, Frankie? We're just friends. If you want her to be kissed under the mistletoe, it's your job," Jane answered.

"I'm the wrong Rizzoli," Frankie said, dropping the subject. _You're an idiot, Jane, _Frankie thought as he walked away. _Maura's perfect for you. She's your soul-mate. Don't be stupid. _

Now, Frankie felt he had a vested interest in getting the two women together. His black eye gave him permission.

Frost watched Jane boiling at her desk. He was partially amused; it wasn't often anyone got the better of Detective Jane Rizzoli. The fact it was Maura tickled him further. He and Korsak often discussed the status of the two women's relationship and both concluded each time that Jane was whipped. She'd do anything for Maura.

When Maura reached forward and kissed Jane in the bullpen Frost thought, _About damn time. _He wasn't disturbed by their kissing; he wondered what took them so long. Jane's reaction caught him off guard. He turned his head and watched Korsak nod approvingly. He just wished Jane would catch a clue. If Jane didn't wrap Maura up as her own personal Christmas present this year Frost was afraid someone else would. Even last week at Mass Frost sent up a prayer for Jane to open her eyes to what was right in front of her.

Angela poured another cup of coffee while she listened to some of the uniformed cops discuss what was now discussed as The Kiss.

"I heard she had her tongue down Rizzoli's throat," one officer laughed.

"Nah, man, it was just a regular kiss but boy, what a kiss," another officer chimed in. "If my woman kissed me like that we'd be rolling around on the floor in no time."

"Ya think Rizzoli knows what to do with another woman?" a third uniform spoke up. Angela turned slightly to see who was speaking. She didn't care for the comment and planned on 'doctoring' his coffee to teach him a lesson.

"Come on, guys, this is Detective Rizzoli we're talking about. She deserves a lot of respect for how she does her job," one of the sergeants spoke up. Angela couldn't place his voice.

"But how does she do her girl?" the other uniformed cop laughed. Several of the others laughed as well. Angela closed her eyes. She didn't care who Jane loved but she didn't enjoy listening to her daughter become the number one topic of this type of conversation.

"Officer, I have your order," Angela spoke up. The one who made the nasty comments looked up.

"Thank you, ma'am," he said to Angela. She thought he was new and didn't know she was Jane's mother. Angela took his money and watched him out of the corner of her eye. The officer walked over and put sugar in his coffee, stirred it, and took a drink. He spewed the coffee all over the counter and began coughing. Angela turned back to her other customers, a slight smile on his face.

"Newton, you okay, man?" one officer asked. Newton's face was turning red and he was struggling to catch his breath. He managed to nod and wave off the other officer. Recovering, he dumped the coffee and turned back to Angela.

"I'm Angela Rizzoli, officer," Angela said. The officer looked stunned for a moment then put his hat on his head and left the café. Angela served the rest of her customers with a satisfied smile on her face.

"Detective the autopsy report is ready," Maura's voice came over Jane's line. When Maura's ring tone sounded Jane was ready to leap up and run downstairs. Hearing Maura's professional tone of voice, however, tempered her enthusiasm. Despite telling Maura she'd be right there Jane contemplated sending Frost for the report. At the last minute she sighed, knowing she wanted to see Maura anyway. Jane took the elevator and tried to enter the morgue in the same manner as always.

"What did you find, Maura?"

"Originally I thought it was suicide but these ligature marks on the victim's wrists indicate otherwise."

"Homicide, then?"

"Yes, Detective. There are other marks on the victim's body to indicate some torture preceded the hanging. Death was definitely strangulation so the victim was tortured then hanged."

Jane cringed when she heard Maura address her as 'detective.' She found it difficult to concentrate on Maura's autopsy findings.

"The report is ready. I'll get it for you." Maura turned to pick up the manila file on the table behind her. Instinctively Jane reached out and grabbed Maura's wrist.

"Maura, wait. Can we do something about this?"

"About what, Detective? I gave you my autopsy findings, I don't know what else there is to talk about."

"Maura, you kissed me yesterday afternoon in the bullpen, in front of my colleagues. You don't think we have anything to talk about?" Jane smiled slightly.

Maura refused to meet Jane's eyes. Her breathing became more shallow. "I don't know what to say," she said softly.

Jane examined Maura's face. She wanted to put the doctor at ease but didn't know how.

"Maura, we're friends. I don't want to lose you or your friendship. We need to find a way to get past this."

Maura felt her heart plunge into her shoes at Jane's mention of their being only friends. She hoped for more, obviously.

"Sure, Jane," Maura said as she burst into tears. Hating herself for breaking down in front of Jane and at work Maura fled. Jane watched her grab her purse and keys and run out of the morgue.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, they belong to people named Tess Gerritsen, Janet Tamaro and TNT. **

**Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy Kwanza to all!**

Part 4

Jane stood there in the morgue watching Maura run out once again. _Damn, how stupid am I? Wait, why's she upset? I don't understand. I came down here to tell her how much her friendship means to me…oh friendship. _Jane could have slapped herself upside the head at her words. Friendship wasn't what Maura wanted right now. Jane continued to stand there in the morgue, alone, thinking. She didn't know what else to do.

"Gabriel it's Nicholas. How are things going between the women?" Gabriel sat back and sighed. If he had hair he would have run his hands through it, he was that frustrated.

"I keep forgetting how emotional humans are. Maura telegraphs her feelings for Jane and Jane runs away. Are you sure this detective is a smart woman?" Gabriel asked. Nicholas chuckled.

"She's actually quite brilliant, in a street smart sort of way." Nicholas replied. "Just keep after them, Gabriel. It is imperative they get together by Christmas."

"Yeah boss, I was thinking about your comment. If they're not together by Christmas what happens?"

"I'm not giving you details, Gabriel, I don't want you to interfere here. Please concentrate on getting the two women together. Obviously you know Dr. Isles is in love with her detective. You need the detective to realize how much in love she is with Dr. Isles."

"Are you sure, Nicholas?"

"Very," Nicholas chuckled again. "As for the other matter it is starting to unfold. Get Detective Rizzoli to understand and admit her feelings for Maura, Gabriel. If you don't we may have a major tragedy on our hands in Boston."

"Got it Boss." Gabriel turned his attention back to Boston.

The call came into dispatch five minutes before Jane was due to be off shift. She shook her head at her unbelievable luck today and paged Frost. He'd ducked out early to finish his Christmas shopping. Jane hoped he didn't mind shopping at the liquor store. Frost may not have any other choice.

"I'll meet you at the scene Jane," Frost replied. Jane called down to dispatch to see if Maura had been paged.

"She asked to be off duty this evening, Detective," the dispatcher said. "I've paged Dr. Gil to cover."

Jane thanked the dispatcher and put her phone away. Grabbing her keys she didn't want to acknowledge the disappointment she felt at not seeing Maura at a crime scene. _Get a grip, Rizzoli, _she thought. _Maura obviously wants to see you only in a professional capacity and not tonight in any case. _

Both detectives arrived at the scene and started looking at the victim. A knife stuck out prominently from a young man's chest, approximately twenty-five to thirty years of age. Blood was everywhere. CSRU arrived and began cataloguing the evidence as Jane and Frost marked it.

"Where's the doc?" Frost asked as Dr. Gil checked in.

"She wanted to be off duty tonight," Jane replied.

"What did you do?" Frost asked.

"I didn't do anything," Jane protested.

"There's your problem Jane. You didn't do anything," Frost said.

"I went down to the morgue to tell Maura how important her friendship is to me. She broke out in tears and ran out."

"Earth to Jane. Friendship is not what Maura's looking for."

"No shit Sherlock. I figured that out yesterday."

"Then why the hell did you talk to her about friendship? Why didn't you grab her in your arms and tell her you love her?"

"Frost this is between Maura and I."

"You do, you know."

"Frost," Jane said in a warning tone of voice. He sighed.

"When you're ready to talk about it, let me know. I'm here for you Jane."

Jane started to reply but didn't. She didn't have anything else to say at the moment. She was confused by her own feelings but didn't want to say anything for fear of saying the wrong thing.

"Frost I'm heading back to the precinct. I'll see you there," Jane sounded distracted. Frost nodded and Jane began walking to her car.

"Hey, Detective," a voice said from out of the air. Jane stopped and looked around. She saw a shadowy figure lurking behind one of the trees.

"Yes?" she called.

"I have information about your vic," the voice said.

"Come out from behind the tree so I can see you," Jane said.

"No can do. No one can see me."

"Who are you?"

"Your eyewitness," came the reply. Jane felt frustrated.

"I can't use you if I don't know who you are. Come out from behind the tree."

"Get real, Detective. I know the murderer. It's a dirty cop dealing drugs."

"How do I know you didn't do this?"

"You don't. The cop is tall and slender. I've seen him a coupla times without his hat, he's mostly bald. Gray and silver hair, still wears a uniform. Don't know his name but I've seen him walk this beat several times in the past month."

Jane sighed. She turned back to the crime scene so she couldsee it fresh given the new information.

Maura sank face down in her sofa, sobbing. She dropped her purse and coat on the floor when she entered her home. Glad to have made it home safely, given her struggle to contain her tears while driving, Maura made it only as far as the sofa before she was forced to release the sobs and her legs gave out.

_Jane, _her heart cried out as the tears came out of her eyes in buckets. _I love you so much. Why can't you love me?_

_You must not be a lovable person, _Maura thought to herself. _Maybe there's something wrong with me. _Stop it, Maura told herself. She was a good person who could love Jane. She wanted Jane to love her back. As her tears subsided Maura made a decision. She would live with her feelings for Jane without pursuing her. Given time the feelings would subside and Maura would live platonically as Jane's best friend. If not she needed to learn to deal. Maura sighed and went into the bathroom to clean her face.

Jane went through the crime scene once again, this time with the new information ringing in her head.

"Hey, Frost, what do you know about some of the uniform cops?"

"Wide subject, Jane. Which one?"

"I don't know. Tall, bald, gray silver hair?" Frost thought for a moment and shook his head.

"Can't think of anyone I know. Any particular reason you're thinking about a uni?"

"New info from an informant as to our murderer here." Frost stared at Jane, then whistled.

"I don't know, Jane. A dirty cop? Doing what and why murder someone?"

"Dealing drugs. Our vic must have pissed him off somehow, maybe a customer who didn't have the money to pay?" Frost shook his head.

"Maybe your informant did this and is trying to throw suspicion on someone else."

"Maybe."

Gabriel sat in his chair and watched the proceedings. He wanted to reach out and hold Maura to comfort her while she cried. He also wanted to smack Jane upside the head for being the reason Maura was sobbing on her sofa. He shook his head. He had to get involved here somehow, he just wasn't sure how. The last time he did a personal visitation on Earth was the night he informed Mary she was carrying Jesus. Over two thousand years later he felt a little out of practice. Besides a personal visitation to the Boston homicide detective might overshadow his news. He didn't want Jane to question his appearance and overlook his message. Gabriel sat in his chair and thought things through for awhile.

"I'll see you at the precinct, Frost," Jane said, leaving. Frost nodded at her.

"Go see Maura, Jane. Tell her you love her."

"No, Frost. We're friends, I keep telling you that. Besides she's probably asleep by now."

Doubtful, Frost thought. Knowing the doc as he did he figured she was probably staring at the ceiling waiting for time to pass, wondering if Jane might call her or stop by.

"Who are you trying to convince, Jane me or yourself?" Jane shook her head and left.

Frost is right about one thing, Jane told herself as she exited her car outside Maura's home. I do love Maura, it's as a friend though and not a romantic partner.

Jane rang the doorbell. Maura opened it and stared at Jane.

"I didn't expect to see you this evening," Maura said evenly.

"We just finished processing a crime scene. I wanted to stop by and see you," Jane said. "May I come in?" Maura hesitated slightly before stepping aside to let Jane enter.

Maura closed the door. "I was in bed."

"I told Frost you were probably sleeping but he encouraged me to stop by anyway."

"So this wasn't your idea?"

Jane was troubled by Maura's tone of voice. "Yeah, in a way it was. He wanted me to stop by and tell you how much I love you."

"So?" Maura didn't let on how her heart leaped at Jane's words.

Jane followed Maura into her bedroom. When Maura sat down on the side of the bed Jane got a good look at Maura's face.

"You've been crying," Jane said softly, tipping Maura's face up. Maura's eyes were red and swollen, with bloodshot eyes. The tip of Maura's nose was also red.

"You know, if I didn't know any better we could nickname you Rudolph," Jane tried to be lighthearted. She was crushed; she knew she was the reason for Maura's tears and instantly hated herself for that.

"Stop, Jane. Just stop. I know you hate me for what I did."

"I could never hate you, Maura, for anything you do."

Maura didn't reply. She stared at the floor, unable to meet Jane's eyes. Jane reached out and stroked Maura's cheek.

"Maura I need you in my life."

"I tried to let you know how I felt."

"You told the whole precinct, Maura."

"Jane, I apologized for my behavior. It won't happen again."

"No?" Maura finally looked Jane in the eye.

"No, Jane, it won't happen again. I know you don't have feelings for me. Please just go. I need some time to get over embarrassing both of us."

Jane opened her mouth to protest then decided better of it. "You're my best friend, Maura Isles, and I don't want to lose you." Jane turned and walked out of Maura's home, hoping it wasn't for the last time.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Part 5

The next few days were agonizingly slow. Jane cleaned up all her old paperwork, files were completed and work disappeared off her desk. She could attribute it to one thing: a lack of Maura Isles in her life. As Maura requested Jane gave Maura plenty of room to get over her embarrassment. Neither woman approached the other.

Jane was lonely; she missed Maura but didn't quite know what to do. She wanted to pretend the kiss and the ensuing conversations never happened. She wanted to be able to walk down to the morgue, issue a last minute invite to the Robber for drinks, and be comfortable having Maura spend the night at her place when they were too drunk to drive. But Jane wasn't comfortable with anything from their previous lives and she didn't want to push Maura. So Jane stayed away.

Frost and Korsak discussed the matter periodically, away from the bullpen and out of Jane's earshot. "I don't know, Korsak, I feel like we should do something."

"Planning to wear your Dear Abby pants tomorrow, Frost?' Korsak replied. "I think we should let it alone. The two of them have never been able to stay away from each other for very long, they'll get it straightened out."

"Jane's so upset and frustrated, Korsak, she's about to screw herself into the ground."

Korsak shrugged. "So Maura will unscrew her, Frost. Don't worry about it."

But Korsak was worried about the situation. He too didn't know what to do other than get the women together, bash their heads and tell them to get over themselves. Being women he knew that wouldn't work. He stayed away from the situation, kept a close eye on Jane and hoped for the best.

"GABRIEL! WHERE ARE YOU?"

"Right here, Nicholas. Why are you upset?"

"I asked you to make sure these two women got together. They're farther apart now than before I assigned you this task. Please tell me you have a plan."

"I'm not sure." Nicholas sighed when he heard those words. "Gabriel, the bad thing I told you about is starting to unfold. PLEASE MAKE SURE DETECTIVE RIZZOLI IS SAFELY WITH DR. ISLES."

"Yes, sir," Gabriel said meekly.

"How's your eye, Frankie?" Angela asked when she saw her older son that morning. She tried to inspect his face but he didn't want to be fussed over in front of the other officers.

"I'm fine, Ma," Frankie insisted. "Have you seen Jane recently?"

"Of course. She comes in for coffee every morning. Why do you ask?"

"I guess she and Maura haven't been spending time together recently. It's all over the precinct they've broken up. I just wondered if she said anything."

"I don't think there was a relationship there before, Frankie, although I think they both have feelings for each other."

"We know Maura does for Jane."

"I think Jane is in love with Maura, Frankie, I don't know if she's admitted it to herself."

Frankie hesitated for a moment. "You don't have a problem with it, Ma, if she is?"

"Of course not, Frankie, I want Jane to be happy. I want the same for you."

"So if I told you my latest conquest is six foot two and answers to the name of Mike you wouldn't have a problem with it?"

Angela stopped and looked at Frankie. "Are you trying to tell me something, son?"

"No, Ma, it's a hypothetical situation. I wondered if you minded Jane dating women."

"And I said I didn't. Where did you meet Mike? What does he do for a living? Are you in love with him or is this just, you know?" Angela used her hands to convey her thoughts to Frankie. Frankie rolled his eyes.

"There's no Mike in my life, Ma. So if Jane dated women you wouldn't mind?"

"I already answered that, Frankie. Bring Mike to dinner on Sunday so I can meet him, okay?" Angela said. Frankie started to protest one more time but decided to just walk away. Sometimes he couldn't get his mother to see his point of view.

Jane was tired of sitting at her desk. She couldn't go downstairs to see Maura so she decided to go to the café for coffee. "You guys want anything from the café? I'm going for coffee."

Both Frost and Korsak declined anything so Jane went alone. Her mother was in the back so she left money on the cash register for her coffee. Deciding against heading directly back to the bullpen she sat at one of the tables for a moment.

"Hi, honey, you okay today?" Angela walked up behind Jane.

"Hey, Ma, I'm getting along okay. How are you?"

"Jane, what do you know about this guy Frankie is dating? He says his name is Mike."

Jane stopped and stared at her mother. _Did she ask me about a guy Frankie is dating? Wait, did I step into an alternate universe when I came in here? _

"Ma, what the hell are you talking about? Frankie's not dating some guy."

"Sure he is. He came in here, talking about how comfortable I was with the idea of you and Dr. Isles dating then mentioned he's dating some guy named Mike. I asked him to bring Mike to dinner. In fact I mentioned bringing him to Sunday dinner. I think I'll ask him to bring him over tonight. Can you and Maura come to dinner tonight?" Angela asked. Jane opened her mouth to decline the invitation then decided this might be just what she needed to break the ice with Maura.

"Sure Ma, we can come. About 7 p.m.?"

"Sounds good. Jane, stop and bring a nice bottle of red wine. Maura will know what to get."

Jane stood, ready to go downstairs to see Maura. She noticed the thrill that ran through her body when she thought of being able to speak to the medical examiner about something other than work.

The elevator doors opened and Jane walked into the morgue with a renewed sense of purpose.

"Maura?" Jane called when she didn't see the doctor. In fact, noticing Maura's absence caused concern to stir in Jane's gut. The morgue was dimly lit, all of the tables and equipment had been cleaned and put away and Maura's office was dark.

"Did you need something, Detective?" one of Maura's lab assistants came in.

"I was looking for Dr. Isles."

"She called in sick today. Said she'd take a call if one came in but she didn't wish to be disturbed otherwise."

Jane scanned the morgue, thought of Maura being home alone with her thoughts and made her decision. She ran back upstairs, grabbed her gun, badge and keys and left. She wanted to look in on Maura.

"Maura?" Jane called and knocked. No answer. She didn't hear anyone moving around inside Maura's house. This was weird. It wasn't like Maura to not answer her door, particularly if she knew Jane was on the other side. Jane pulled out her phone and dialed Maura's landline. She could hear the phone ringing on the other side of the door. After six rings she heard the machine pick up. Jane ended the call without leaving a message. She tried Maura's cell but got only her voice mail.

"Maura, it's Jane. I wanted to check on you since you called in sick. If you need me, just call. In fact, just call me when you get this, I want to make sure you're okay." Jane didn't know what else to say so she hung up. She hated not having a chance to speak with Maura.

Maura noted the missed call on her cell and put the phone down without accessing the message. Probably Jane, she thought and pulled the blanket around her shoulders. She was at her parents' beach house, sitting on the front porch. Although it was cold with a steady breeze blowing Maura thought it was one of the most beautiful places on earth. She came out here whenever she had the chance.

She made the decision very impulsively when she watched Jane walk out of her home after their last conversation. Maura knew she'd end up sobbing on the sofa, drinking too much wine and then not be able to sleep. She wanted to find a way to put her feelings away since Jane obviously didn't feel the same. Her eye fell on a picture of her and Jane, taken at the beach house during a long summer weekend. Maura went into her bedroom and packed a bag.

Although she told her assistant she could respond to a call she knew she was too far away for that to be practical. She placed another call to Dr. Gil, who agreed to be on call for her, and Maura notified dispatch of the change. She wanted to call Jane and let her know she'd be unavailable for a couple of days but changed her mind. Jane probably didn't care that Maura wasn't at work and Maura needed to distance herself from Jane in order to manage her feelings.

Jane ended up at The Robber. Korsak walked in for a late lunch and saw his former partner sitting on one of the barstools.

"Rough day Jane?" he asked. Jane nodded. She was in the process of peeling the label off her beer bottle. Korsak knew that was one of her coping techniques.

"Maura's out sick a couple of days," Jane said.

"She come down with the flu?" Korsak asked. Jane shrugged.

"How the hell would I know? She doesn't talk to me anymore."

Korsak observed Jane for a moment. He usually didn't involve himself in other's lives but this was Jane. He cared about her as if she was his own daughter.

"I know this is none of my business, Jane, but what happened the other day after Maura kissed you?"

"She caught me off guard, Korsak, in front of you, Frost, Crowe dammit, and all the others. Ma said they've been talking behind my back. You know I hate that."

"Sure, but you can't control everything Jane. Sometimes colleagues misunderstand things and the rumor mill takes over before anything can be set right. Other times, like this one, things happen. Let me ask you this, Jane: if it worth losing Maura over?"

Jane thought for a moment. "I've never had feelings for a woman before, Korsak. I've never wanted to sleep with one."

"But…?"

"Maura's different. I tried telling her I wanted her in my life but she was too upset to listen."

"Did you tell her you love her?"

"No."

"Do you love Maura, Jane?" Korsak asked quietly.

"Yes."

"Then tell her."

"She isn't answering her phone or answering her door."

"Tell her when you can. In the meantime Angela mentioned your going to her house for dinner. "

"Oh crap, I almost forgot. I'm supposed to pick up a bottle of wine. I'll stop at the liquor store on the way." Jane hopped off the stool, hesitated for a moment, then patted Korsak on the back. "Thank you."

Jane pulled into the liquor store parking lot and slid into a space. She hurried inside. She was going to grab the first red wine she saw, pay for it and leave. _I'm not the wine enthusiast Maura is, _she thought. _If Maura was with me I'd let her pick it out, although I doubt Maura would let me buy it at a liquor store. _Jane smiled at the thought. _I'll be glad when Maura lets me see her and I can tell her how I feel. _A warm thrill shot through Jane. _I'll stop by Maura's on the way home from Ma's, see if she's feeling better. _Jane's mood perked up when she thought of seeing Maura that evening.

Jane entered the liquor store and saw the gunman out of the corner of her eye. He had a weapon pointed at the clerk while a young mother with a baby in her arms cowered in fear by the dairy case.

_Shit, lady came in for milk and got caught in a robbery. _Jane went over to the mother very slowly and stood in front of her, her back to the robber momentarily.

"Take it easy, everything's going to be fine, ma'am. You'll be okay." Jane spoke in a quiet, soothing tone. Turning back to the counter she watched the gunman. _God he looks like he's maybe all of fifteen years old. _The gunman very slowly turned his head and looked at Jane.

"It's okay, I just came over to stand by this lady, she seemed upset," Jane said. She didn't want to startle the gunman. The store clerk bagged the rest of the money and shoved it across the counter.

"It's all there," he said in a shaky voice. The lady behind Jane began to sob.

"Everything's going to be all right," Jane said over her shoulder.

"No, it isn't. There's never enough money for all the bills, putting food on the table is difficult. My boss is very strict because he's afraid I'll call in sick all the time because of the kids and my job is stressful. I can't handle this right now!" the lady screamed as she crumpled to the floor. Jane turned to help her since she still cradled the baby in her arms. A sudden movement by the gunman caught Jane's attention and she was caught between the two. The gunman noticed the weapon holstered on Jane's hip as her jacket opened.

He sprinted over to Jane and grabbed her wrist. "Are you a cop?" he sneered. Jane hesitated. "Yes," she answered.

They began to hear sirens in the distance, growing louder. "You're my ticket out of here," he growled at Jane. He kicked the lady behind her to get her to shut up. Pulling Jane's arm he yanked her forward. Jane followed, hoping to find a way to disarm the gunman without him firing. Shoving Jane in front of him he encircled his waist with his free arm and dangled the weapon by her face.

Two cruisers pulled up front, blocking the entrance to the store. Three uniformed officers opened their doors and took cover while the fourth officer grabbed a megaphone and turned it toward the store.

Maura shivered, deciding to go inside. As beautiful as the night was it was too cold to sit on the porch any longer. She turned on the lights and decided to make a quick salad for dinner.

Settling on the sofa she turned on the television to catch the news.

"And in Boston today, a former hero cop had the tables turned on her when she stepped into a local liquor store," the newsman began to read. As Maura picked at her salad she looked up at the screen.

Jane's face filled the background. "Detective Jane Rizzoli is currently being held hostage at A1 Liquors on the south side of Boston."

"JANE!" Maura screamed.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Part 6

A solid wall of police cruisers, lights flashing, stood at attention at the curb. Doors open, each officer used his door as a shield, his service revolver cocked and ready to fire. Jane barely moved her head and saw the back end of a truck at the end of the block. She recognized the SWAT team's truck but fortunately it was unmarked; if the gunman who held her hostage looked he might have thought it was the UPS truck being moved out of the way. Jane knew the SWAT team was in place by now and she willed herself not to look around. She didn't want to elevate this situation.

The gunman was nervous. The arm that was wrapped around her neck and shoulders shook slightly. The gunman's breathing was heavy and out of the corner of her eye she could see perspiration forming on his forehead and sliding down his face. In the background the young woman with the baby still sat on the floor of the liquor store, sobbing.

Jane watched her fellow officers watch her and the gunman. When he took her hostage she was glad because if he'd taken the young woman and baby Jane knew she'd have to do something about it and she didn't want to be responsible for ending a young life. She also didn't want anything happening to innocent bystanders.

The main problem now was the standstill they were in. The officers wouldn't do anything unless the gunman made a rash decision. The SWAT team waited for orders to fire; orders Jane knew wouldn't come while the gunman had a homicide detective as hostage. He was holding her too close for anyone to be able to get a clear shot. Jane's hands were at her side. She was conscious of clenching and unclenching her fists. If it became necessary for her to lash out or punch the gunman she wanted to be ready.

Maura's hands shook as she changed clothes quickly and grabbed her keys. Normally she kept a cool head in an emergency but watching Jane being held hostage at gunpoint was a game changer. Maura grabbed her cell phone and began dialing numbers before she was completely out the door.

"Korsak."

"Vince what's going on?"

"Jane is being held hostage by a teenage gunman who tried to hold up the liquor store."

"I saw the news. Any new developments?" Maura asked. Korsak sighed.

"No, just a standoff. We have officers and SWAT in place. Where are you?"

"I was at my parents' beach house. I'm on my way back but it will be a couple of hours."

"Leave your phone on and I'll keep you updated."

"Thanks, Vince."

Korsak wanted to ask Maura to keep Jane in her prayers but he didn't want to unnerve the medical examiner more than she already was. Examining a dead body at a crime scene was one thing, being afraid your best friend was soon to end up on your table could take out anyone. Korsak didn't want Maura speeding and possibly losing control of her vehicle in an effort to get to Jane.

Angela counted the place settings and counted off the guests on her fingers. She couldn't remember if Jane said Maura would be attending so she included the doctor in her head count. She looked at the good china with a smile on her face. Frankie finally found someone, she was glad. She only hoped Mike was a good match for her son.

The phone rang and Angela grabbed it up. "Ma, we have a situation," Frankie began.

"No, Frankie, don't tell me you're not going to make it to dinner. Where's Mike?"

"For the thousandth time Ma, I'm not dating anyone named Mike. Jane's being held hostage by a gunman who tried to hold up the liquor store."

Angela screamed. "I knew she should never have become a cop! When this is over I'm going to tell her to find a husband and start having children. I do not want to have to go through this again."  
>"Ma, just calm down, everything's going to be fine. I have to go, I wanted to let you know Jane and I won't be there for dinner. And there's no Mike." Frankie ended the call. Angela stood in her living room looking out the window at a neighborhood that always seemed safe. She moved to turn on her tv set. She steeled her nerves to be able to watch.<p>

Jane cleared her throat. "They won't make a move until you do," she said over her shoulder to the gunman.

"I don't want anything," he replied.

"You don't want a getaway car or anything like that?"

"No and shut up I'm trying to think." Jane shrugged.

"Just so you know I wasn't planning on shooting you in the store. I was going to let you go so the others in the store wouldn't be harmed."

"That's nice, lady, but please shut up!"

"I can help you."

"How?"

"If you let me go I can work with the district attorney's office. Maybe get you charged with a lesser crime. When you turn twenty-five you'll be released and you'll have a high school diploma and job skills."

"Sounds like Shangri-la. Now shut up. I call the shots."

"Not if you shoot a cop."

"I'm not planning on it, lady. Why don't you shut up? I want to think."

"I'm trying to help you think. I'm trying to give you alternatives. If something happens to one of the cops here, myself included, they'll throw you in a cell and throw away the key. You're pretty young, you want that to happen?"

The gunman tightened his grip on her. His elbow was tight against her throat preventing Jane from speaking further. Breathing might become a problem, she thought. She looked at the sea of officers in the street. Most of them were friends of Frankie's, she realized. She looked for her brother then, but didn't see him. She knew his sergeant probably grabbed him off duty since she was the hostage. Family members weren't permitted to work cases with other family members.

Jane picked her hands up and put them on the gunman's arm. "Can't breathe," she choked out. He loosened his grip just a bit. "I'm not letting you go," he said.

"I just want to breathe a little easier. I'm not trying to get away from you."

Maura changed highways and continued her prayers. _God we've never been close. I've been such a scientist all my life I doubted your existence. But if you do exit, I need your help. Please protect Jane. I don't want to lose her. She's a good person, Lord, she needs you. As does her family, _Maura amended as she thought of Angela. Thinking of Angela she spoke Angela's name and her hands-free cell dialed the Rizzoli family home.

"Angela, it's Maura. I'm driving back from the coast. Anything new?"

"Maura, it's good to hear your voice. Frankie just called to tell me that Jane is being held hostage at gunpoint. I have the news channel on. Nothing new yet. The gunman has his arm around Jane's throat and they're outside the liquor store. Looks like every cop in Boston is there."

"Sounds about right. Angela I'm about an hour away from you. Please call me and let me know what's happening. I'll stop by and pick you up when we have news."

Maura ended the call. She didn't realize she'd started crying until the tears were dripping off her chin and onto the steering wheel. She didn't know why but she felt guilty for Jane's situation.

_If I hadn't kissed her we wouldn't have this rift between us. I could have brought a nice red wine to dinner, and Jane would never have been in that liquor store. _At that thought Maura's prayers became more fervent.

"My feet are starting to hurt." Jane wanted to sit down somewhere.

"So's my arm but I'm not changing anything," the gunman said. Out of the very corner of her eye Jane saw a SWAT officer on the roof of the store next door. She hoped the gunman hadn't noticed but wondered if things were about to change.

They were. The cell phone in the gunman's pocket began to ring.

"Grab my phone out of my right pocket, will you please?" Jane reached around and pulled out the cell. She opened it and pushed the talk button, placing the phone up to the gunman's head.

"Hi, Mom, what's up?" she heard the gunman say. Jane rolled her eyes. _He's holding me hostage at gunpoint and he acts like it's an everyday conversation with his mother. _

"I can't do that, Ma. I have cops surrounding me. The minute I let her go they'll shoot."

"No, they won't," Jane interjected.

"Yes, they will," he answered, looking at Jane. "Look, Ma, I gotta go. I love you. Take care of Benjy for me, will you?"

"Who's Benjy?"  
>"My son," the gunman replied.<p>

"How old are you?" Jane asked.

"Fifteen. Why, how old are you?" he said sarcastically.

"How old is Benjy?"

"Eight months."

"Damn, kid, you didn't wait long, did you?" The gunman grinned.

"You know how it is when the ladies love you," he cracked.

"That makes this situation more tragic. If you get killed your son will never know you. Did you leave him any pictures of you?"

"A couple," the gunman said defensively. "His mama will make sure he knows who I am."

"Too bad he won't get to know you yourself. You should be there for him."

"Look lady I'm getting tired of listening to you. Maybe I should just shoot you myself, shut you up permanently."

"No, don't do that. We'll both be dead then. I can help you. What were you trying to do, get money for your son?"

"We need milk and diapers. I couldn't get work today."

"You're supposed to be in school."

"I kind of blew that idea out of the water. Gotta work to support my family."

"If you let me go I swear I will help you. You might have to do a couple of years for the attempted holdup but I'll help you any way I can. Maybe we can get some of the charges dropped for holding a police officer hostage."

"Santa doesn't work in my neighborhood lady. Neither does the D.A.'s office. Fat chance any of that happening. I might as well make my move and hope for the best."

At that Jane felt the gunman's arm leave her throat. He shoved her down, aimed his weapon at the nearest cop and fired. His shot went wide, hitting no one. But several officers returned fire and the gunman died before he hit the pavement. Jane rolled over onto one knee and observed the lifeless body of a fifteen year old armed robber. _Shit_, she thought.

Maura's cell rang. "Doc, it's me," Korsak said. "The hostage situation is over. Jane is okay." Maura felt relief flood her body.

"She isn't hurt?"

"No. They're taking her to the hospital as a precaution. The gunman pushed her out of the way just before he died. Cavanaugh insisted she go to the ER to get checked out, look for concussion."

"That's great news, Vince. Thank you. I'm about five minutes away from Angela's. I told her I'd pick her up."

Maura pulled into the driveway and started to get out of the car. Instead the front door opened and Angela ran out, got into Maura's car and said hello. Maura put the car in reverse and backed out of the driveway.

Neither woman said anything. Five minutes later they were in the ER parking lot. Both jumped out of Maura's car and headed into the hospital.

"I am not staying the night. I am fine," Jane said through gritted teeth. The ER doctor had just given her instructions for treating a slight concussion then advised Jane be admitted for observation.

"It's only overnight," Angela said. Maura was still in the waiting area. She insisted Angela go in first.

"I want to go home, sleep in my own bed."

"You're like a two year old brat, Jane Rizzoli," Angela said sternly. After hugging her only daughter she felt like she wanted to strangle her now.

"I'll stay with her, make sure she's okay," Maura said from the edge of the bed.

"Yeah, Maura can stay with me, make sure I'm okay. And she's a doctor," Jane added before Angela could protest further.

"Okay, Doctor, discharge her into Dr. Isles' care," Angela said.

"Thank you, Maura." Jane said.

"You're welcome, Jane. It will give us a chance to talk," Maura said. Jane made a face. Maura chose to ignore it.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, they belong to Tess Gerritsen and Janet Tamaro. **

Part 7

Maura guided Jane into her home and pointed the detective toward the bedroom. "Come on, let's get you settled."

"I'm perfectly fine to sit on the sofa and watch tv, Maura. I don't need to lie down."

"Doctor's orders," Maura replied sharply but with a smile.

"Bossy," Jane replied.

"I'm thinking of your health, Jane. Your body's had a scare." _Not to mention scaring me, _Maura thought.

"I'm sorry I scared you," Jane said.

"I know. We'll talk later. I want you to take a nap now. I have to keep waking you to make sure you're okay so you need your rest now."

Jane didn't protest. She realized she liked the idea of Maura taking care of her; she was just sorry how it came about.

Frankie looked at Frost and sighed. "How does Jane walk into situations like this?" Frost laughed.

"It could have been any one of us, Frankie. Jane just happened to be the lucky one tonight."

"True. I was glad she went home with Maura, though."

"Yeah, the doc's good for Jane, she'll take good care of her girl." Frost answered. They were both at the crime scene, seeing to the mop up operations. Frost wasn't looking forward to the mountain of paperwork, though.

"What do you mean, Frost, Maura's good for Jane?" Frankie asked. Frost froze for a moment. _Oh hell, what can of worms did I just open?_ He thought.

"Frankie, you know as well as I do, those two are made for each other. They're each other's soul mates. If Jane isn't smart she'll wake up one morning and Maura will be in someone else's arms. Haven't you noticed how they are when they're together?"

"Yeah," Frankie answered. He shrugged. "I wish Jane would admit her feelings for Maura. I'd like to see them happy together."

Frost grinned. "If Doctor Isles has her way your sister might think she got hit by a tidal wave. I think the doc was planning to use this recovery time to get Jane to think about her feelings."

"My sister's going to love that, Frost," Frankie replied, rolling his eyes. He grinned.

Maura busied herself in the kitchen. She finished the last of her dishes from the night before and thought about what to fix for dinner. They only needed a light supper. Jane didn't need to have anything heavy on her stomach if she had a potential concussion and Maura wasn't hungry. Wiping down the counter she was about to turn around to check the contents of her refrigerator when she heard Jane coming down the hallway. After a quick moment long arms encircled her waist. Maura leaned back into Jane.

"I thought you were resting," Maura said.

"I heard you working in here. Please don't do this, Maura." She felt Maura stiffen.

"No, Maura, you're misunderstanding me. I don't want to be a burden on you. You work hard, you need to wake me periodically through the night so no dishes, cleaning or cooking. Ma will be here sometime later to drop off food for forty. Come into the bedroom and rest with me, Maura." Jane took Maura's hand and led her to the bedroom. Jane resettled on her side of the bed and patted Maura's side.

"Stretch out with me for awhile. You've had a frantic time of it, I know." Jane watched Maura exchange her dress for a tank top and shorts then join her on the bed. A comfortable silence ensued. Jane reached out her hand and took Maura's in hers.

"Jane, is the idea of being with me all that ridiculous to you?" Maura asked.

"You don't waste time, do you Maura?" Jane replied with a hint of humor in her voice.

"I apologized for kissing you in the precinct Jane, but I still feel like you're holding a grudge against me."

Jane remained silent for a moment. "I'm sorry, Jane, I guess you don't want to talk about this with me," Maura said and moved as if to get off the bed. Jane tightened her grip on Maura's hand.

"Don't go."

Maura looked at Jane. "I don't want to go anywhere, Jane, but I have to do something to get rid of these feelings for you. I can't live with romantic feelings for you if you have none for me."

"You'd leave?" Jane asked incredulously.

"Maybe."

"Do you think that's best?" Jane asked in a low voice.

"No, the best is for you to admit you have feelings for me and we can officially start the relationship we've been having for the past couple of years."

Jane thought that over for a bit. "Yeah I guess we have been dating."  
>"We've been dating, having sleepovers, waking up next to each other nearly every night. We quit dating men."<p>

"Or we scared them off."

"You do, Jane. I've seen the vibe you give out when a man starts to get close. It's like a gauntlet they have to hurdle over to be with you on any level."

"Yeah, well, I haven't had the most successful dates or relationships with anyone other than you."

"My point precisely. Who do you think of when you think of spending the rest of your life with someone, Jane?"

_You_, Jane thought but she didn't voice it. She wasn't comfortable with where this conversation was going. Fortunately for her they were interrupted by Angela coming in.

"Hello, it's me," Angela called out. The women heard her enter the kitchen.

"Dinner's here." Jane looked at Maura.

"I'll go show her where to put everything. You need your rest, Jane, please try to sleep."

"You need your rest, too, Maura. You're the one keeping me up later."

"I'll be right back." With that Maura disappeared down the hallway.

Maura crept back down the hallway. Between assisting Angela with the food and discussing Jane's condition it was another half an hour before she made it back to Jane. She peeked at the detective and found her asleep. Quietly settling on the bed Maura turned to face Jane.

Watching Jane's features Maura was struck by just how much in love with Jane she really was. Saddened that the detective didn't return her feelings Maura began to cry softly. Trying to be quiet so she didn't disturb Jane Maura rolled over on her side.

Jane heard Maura settle back on the bed then heard her crying. Opening her eyes she noticed Maura on the far side of the bed, her back to Jane. Reaching out Jane pulled Maura to her. Maura rolled back to face Jane.

"The one I think of Maura, is you. I want to wake up next to you every morning. Whenever you start dating someone new I get scared. Scared he'll take you away from me and I'll only have memories of our time together and our sleepovers."

"I'm not going anywhere, Jane."

"I know that now. Can you settle for a homicide detective, Maura? I'm not as smart as you. You're quite beautiful you know. You can have anyone you want."

"Fortunately, Detective, you're the one I want."

Jane looked into Maura's hazel eyes. "I'm the lucky one." Reaching forward she captured Maura's lips in a kiss.

Breaking the kiss when they need to breathe Maura gazed lovingly at Jane. "We need to sleep, Jane. I have to wake you, remember?"

"As long as you're with me, Maura." Jane pulled Maura even closer and Maura snuggled into her side.

"It's the only place I want to be, Jane."

Two days later Jane was cleared of any possible concussion and she was allowed to return to work. She walked into the bullpen to find donuts and balloons adorning her desk. She smiled.

"Welcome back Jane!" Frost and Korsak spoke almost simultaneously.

"Thanks guys. Help yourselves to the donuts."

"The case file for the suicide by cop is on your desk. You need to sign the forms then add your narrative to it, Jane." Jane nodded. She knew her description of being a hostage and how it came about needed to be dictated and added to the case file.

"Did the kid's story check out, Frost? He told me he had an eight month old son."

"Yeah, Jane, he did. The boy is being raised by his mother. The baby mama is living with her parents. She's fourteen, Jane." Jane shook her head.

"How did this kid's life get away from him so quickly?" she asked. "I want to do something for the family, Frost. The kid wasn't right to commit robbery and take me hostage but he was desperate for food and diapers for his son." Frost nodded.

"Several of the other cops have chipped in, Jane. We have a couple hundred dollars ready for the family and social services were called."

Jane nodded her approval and thanks. Looking over the donuts she saw her favorite and was about to snag it when she heard Maura's distinctive heels coming down the hallway.

"I brought coffee to go with that donut, Detective." Maura smiled at Jane.

"Thank you, Doctor."

"Ah, Jane, why so formal?" Frost was disappointed. "Didn't you two have a chance to work things out?"

"Yeah, Rizzoli, one of these days someone with real balls is going to move in on your territory," Crowe spoke up. Jane cringed. Crowe always got on her nerves.

"No, Crowe, no one's moving in on my territory. So if you had any ideas of being with the doc you can keep your hands to yourself." Jane moved to Maura and took her in her arms.

"I want to do this the right way. Maura kissed me the other day and I didn't have the best reaction. I'm sorry, Maura; I've had feelings for you since we met." Leaning forward she kissed Maura thoroughly.

Maura couldn't believe Jane was kissing her in the same spot she kissed Jane, or that Jane was doing this in front of her coworkers. She heard whistles start throughout the precinct. She was pretty sure they were drawing a crowd.

Jane ended the kiss but continued to hold Maura. "I love you, Maura. I always have and I always will."

"I love you, too, Jane."

The End

A happy and healthy New Year to everyone. I hope Santa was kind to everyone last week and that good wishes and blessings follow you through 2012. Actually, I hope they chase you down and force themselves on you.


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